Tuesday, 16 August 2011

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (Single-Disc Edition) (DVD)

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (Single-Disc Edition)
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (Single-Disc Edition) (DVD)
By Harrison Ford

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Review & Description

INDIANA JONES AND THE KINGDOM OF THE - DVD MovieNearly 20 years after riding his last Crusade, Harrison Ford makes a welcome return as archaeologist/relic hunter Indiana Jones in Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, an action-packed fourth installment that's, in a nutshell, less memorable than the first three but great nostalgia for fans of the series. Producer George Lucas and screenwriter David Koepp (War of the Worlds) set the film during the cold war, as the Soviets--replacing Nazis as Indy's villains of choice and led by a sword-wielding Cate Blanchett with black bob and sunglasses--are in pursuit of a crystal skull, which has mystical powers related to a city of gold. After escaping from them in a spectacular opening action sequence, Indy is coerced to head to Peru at the behest of a young greaser (Shia LaBeouf) whose friend--and Indy's colleague--Professor Oxley (John Hurt) has been captured for his knowledge of the skull's whereabouts. Whatever secrets the skull holds are tertiary; its reveal is the weakest part of the movie, as the CGI effects that inevitably accompany it feel jarring next to the boulder-rolling world of Indy audiences knew and loved. There's plenty of comedy, delightful stunts--ants play a deadly role here--and the return of Raiders love interest Karen Allen as Marion Ravenwood, once shrill but now softened, giving her ex-love bemused glances and eye-rolls as he huffs his way to save the day. Which brings us to Ford: bullwhip still in hand, he's a little creakier, a lot grayer, but still twice the action hero of anyone in film today. With all the anticipation and hype leading up to the film's release, perhaps no reunion is sweeter than that of Ford with the role that fits him as snugly as that fedora hat. --Ellen A. Kim




Stills from Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (Click for larger image)











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Running Man / Red Heat [Blu-ray] (Blu-ray)

Running Man / Red Heat [Blu-ray]
Running Man / Red Heat [Blu-ray] (Blu-ray)
By Arnold Schwarzenegger

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Studio: Lions Gate Home Ent. Release Date: 11/23/2010 Read more


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The Best of Blu-ray: Action (Troy Director's Cut / Blood Diamond / Wyatt Earp / Alexander Revisited The Final Cut) (Blu-ray)

The Best of Blu-ray: Action (Troy Director's Cut / Blood Diamond / Wyatt Earp / Alexander Revisited The Final Cut)
The Best of Blu-ray: Action (Troy Director's Cut / Blood Diamond / Wyatt Earp / Alexander Revisited The Final Cut) (Blu-ray)
By Brad Pitt

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BEST OF BLU RAY:ACTION - Blu-Ray Movie Read more


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Wednesday, 10 August 2011

The Dark Knight (Single-Disc Widescreen Edition) (DVD)

The Dark Knight (Single-Disc Widescreen Edition)
The Dark Knight (Single-Disc Widescreen Edition) (DVD)
By Christian Bale

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Dark Knight DVD. One of the top sellers in action movies still ! Directed by Christopher Nolan - Starring Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Aaron Eckhart Warner Home Video - Rated PG13 - 153 min - Crime Drama - Region: 1 (USA & territories, Canada) Christopher Nolan steps back into the director's chair for this sequel to Batman Begins, which finds the titular superhero coming face to face with his greatest nemesis -- the dreaded Joker. Christian Bale returns to the role of Batman, Maggie Gyllenhaal takes over the role of Rachel Dawes (played by Katie Holmes in Batman Begins), and Brokeback Mountain star Heath Ledger dons the ghoulishly gleeful Joker makeup previously worn by Jack Nicholson and Cesar Romero. Just as it begins to appear as if Batman, Lt. James Gordon (Gary Oldman), and District Attorney Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart) are making headway in their tireless battle against the criminal element, a maniacal, wisecracking fiend plunges the streets of Gotham City into complete chaos. ~ Jason Buchanan, RoviThe Dark Knight arrives with tremendous hype (best superhero movie ever? posthumous Oscar for Heath Ledger?), and incredibly, it lives up to all of it. But calling it the best superhero movie ever seems like faint praise, since part of what makes the movie great--in addition to pitch-perfect casting, outstanding writing, and a compelling vision--is that it bypasses the normal fantasy element of the superhero genre and makes it all terrifyingly real. Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart) is Gotham City's new district attorney, charged with cleaning up the crime rings that have paralyzed the city. He enters an uneasy alliance with the young police lieutenant, Jim Gordon (Gary Oldman), and Batman (Christian Bale), the caped vigilante who seems to trust only Gordon--and whom only Gordon seems to trust. They make progress until a psychotic and deadly new player enters the game: the Joker (Heath Ledger), who offers the crime bosses a solution--kill the Batman. Further complicating matters is that Dent is now dating Rachel Dawes (Maggie Gyllenhaal, after Katie Holmes turned down the chance to reprise her role), the longtime love of Batman's alter ego, Bruce Wayne.

In his last completed role before his tragic death, Ledger is fantastic as the Joker, a volcanic, truly frightening force of evil. And he sets the tone of the movie: the world is a dark, dangerous place where there are no easy choices. Eckhart and Oldman also shine, but as good as Bale is, his character turns out rather bland in comparison (not uncommon for heroes facing more colorful villains). Director-cowriter Christopher Nolan (Memento) follows his critically acclaimed Batman Begins with an even better sequel that sets itself apart from notable superhero movies like Spider-Man 2 and Iron Man because of its sheer emotional impact and striking sense of realism--there are no suspension-of-disbelief superpowers here. At 152 minutes, it's a shade too long, and it's much too intense for kids. But for most movie fans--and not just superhero fans--The Dark Knight is a film for the ages. --David Horiuchi

On the Blu-ray disc
The Dark Knight on Blu-ray is a great home-theater showoff disc. The detail and colors are tremendous in both dark and bright scenes (the Gotham General scene is a great example of the latter), and the punishing Dolby TrueHD soundtrack makes the house rattle. (After giving us only Dolby 5.1 in a number of big Blu-ray releases this fall, Warner came through with Dolby TrueHD on this one.) One of the most interesting elements of The Dark Knight was how certain scenes were shot in IMAX, and if you saw the movie in an IMAX theater the film's aspect ratio would suddenly change from standard 2.40:1 to a thrilling 1.43:1 that filled the screen six stories high. For the Blu-ray disc, director Christopher Nolan has somewhat re-created this experience by shifting his film from 2.40:1 aspect ratio (through most of the film) to 1.78:1 in the IMAX scenes. While the effect isn't as dramatic as it was in theaters, it's still an eye-catching experience to be watching the film on a widescreen TV with black bars at the top and bottom, then seeing the 1.78:1 scenes completely fill the screen. The main bonus feature on disc 1 is "Gotham Uncovered: The Creation of a Scene," which is 81 minutes of behind-the-scenes footage about the IMAX scenes, the Bat suit, Gotham Central, and others. You can watch the film and access these featurettes when the icon pops up, or you can simply watch them from the main menu. A welcome and unusual feature is that in addition to English, French, and Spanish audio and subtitles, there's an audio-described option that allows the sight-impaired to experience the film as well.

Disc 2 has two 45-minute documentaries on Bat-gadgets and on the psychology of Batman, both in high definition. They combine movie clips, talking heads, and comic-book panels, but aren't the kind of thing one needs to watch twice. More engaging are six eight-minute segments of Gotham Central, a faux-news program that gives some background to events in the movie, plus a variety of trailers, poster art, and more. The BD-Live component on disc 1 is more interesting than on some earlier Blu-ray discs, which could be simply a matter of the content starting to catch up with the technology. There are three new picture-in-picture commentaries, by Jerry Robinson (creator of the Joker), DC Comics president Paul Levitz, and Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.--he's a Batman fan who's made some movie and TV cameos), plus you can record your own commentary and upload it for others to watch. There are also three new featurettes ("Sound of the Batpod," "Harvey Dent's Theme," and "Hans Zimmer and James Newton Howard") and two motion comics ("Mad Love," featuring Harley Quinn, and "The Shadow of Ra's Al Ghul"). Last, there's a digital copy of the film compatible with iTunes and Windows Media (standard definition, expires 12/9/09). --David Horiuchi Read more


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Chuck Norris: Three Film Collection (The President's Man / The President's Man 2: A Line In The Sand / Logan's War: Bound by Honor) (DVD)

Chuck Norris: Three Film Collection (The President's Man / The President's Man 2: A Line In The Sand / Logan's War: Bound by Honor)
Chuck Norris: Three Film Collection (The President's Man / The President's Man 2: A Line In The Sand / Logan's War: Bound by Honor) (DVD)
By Chuck Norris

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CHUCK NORRIS THREE FILM COLLECTION SET

THE PRESIDENT'S MAN
THE PRESIDENT'S MAN: A LINE IN THE SAND

To many, Joshua McCord (Chuck Norris) is a charismatic Asian studies professor. To the President of the United States, he's America¹s greatest secret weapon: a covert operative charged with only the most sensitive and dangerous missions. With his protégé Deke Slater and daughter Que, McCord takes on a Colombian drug cartel that has gone on a deadly offensive (in The President's Man) and faces extremist terrorists threatening to detonate a nuclear bomb after their billionaire mastermind is brought to trial (in The President's Man: A Line in the Sand).

LOGAN'S WAR: BOUND BY HONOR
Chuck Norris stars as martial arts extraordinaire Jake Fallon, who, after the death of his brother and sister-in-law, adopts--and trains--his orphaned nephew, Logan (Eddie Cibrian, TV's Invasion). After fifteen years of careful instruction, Logan is determined to avenge his parents' deaths...and he'll need Uncle Jake's help to do it. Read more


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Tuesday, 2 August 2011

Source Code (DVD)

Source Code
Source Code (DVD)
By Jake Gyllenhaal

Review & Description

A helicopter pilot (Gyllenhaal) recruited for a top-secret military operation finds himself on a startlingly different kind of mission in Source Code, a smart, fast-paced action thriller that challenges our assumptions about time and space. Filled with mind-boggling twists and heart-pounding suspense, Source Code is directed by Duncan Jones (Moon).Director Duncan Jones made a stellar first impression with 2009's Moon, a stylish, gratifyingly deep science-fiction movie that favored heart and soul over flashy special effects. Source Code, Jones's much anticipated follow-up, proves that his debut was far from a fluke, blending techno-thriller and character study with deceptive ease. Shot in a clean, no-frills fashion, Ben Ripley's script follows an MIA soldier (Jake Gyllenhaal) who awakes in a mysterious capsule, with contact with the outside world limited to a video feed from a shadowy military officer (the fantastically poker-faced Vera Farmiga). As events unfold, he learns that he's the participant in an experiment that lets him relive a stranger's past life in 8-minute chunks, a process that will hopefully allow him to avert the terrorist bombing of a packed commuter train. Jones, aided by Chris Brown's wonderfully overt '80s homage of a score, wrings an impressive amount of tension out of the constantly rewinding story, with each time jump revealing another small piece of the overall puzzle, as well as deepening the relationship between Gyllenhaal and fellow passenger Michelle Monaghan. Clocking in at a just-right 93 minutes, this is a funny, tense, and surprisingly moving film that perhaps never quite reaches the ingenuity that its premise suggests. If this counts as a sophomore slump, it's of an extremely mild, very entertaining variety. --Andrew Wright Read more


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